Compiling the Linux Kernel

This article will serve as a primer to people who are new to the
world of Linux hacking, and are attempting to compile the Linux kernel
from source. The various steps from downloading the kernel source to
booting from the new kernel image are explained. Also given are tips
on cleaning up the source code, doing verbose compilation etc.

1. Downloading the kernel source code

In order to compile a new kernel we have to download the source code of
the Linux kernel. We can download the source from www.kernel.org. Here we
can find all versions of the Linux kernel source code. Let's take an
example. Suppose we want to compile the 2.6.9 version of the linux kernel.
We have to download the 2.6.9 source code from:

It's better to download the bzipped version, as that will be more
compressed than its gzipped counterpart; hence will take less
time to download. A wget from the command line will look like:

wget http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v2.6/linux-2.6.9.tar.bz2

Once we download the required kernel version source, we need to bunzip
and untar it. We can do the following:

tar xvjf linux-2.6.9.tar.bz2

The 'x' option is to denote the untarring (e'x'traction), 'v' for
verbose, 'j' for specifying that we need to bunzip the file before
untarring and 'f' for stating the name of the input file.

The file will untar into the directory linux-2.6.9. Once it's
untarred 'cd' to linux-2.6.9.

2. Configuring the kernel

We have to configure the kernel before we start compiling it.
During the configuration phase, we will select the components which
we want to be part of the kernel. For example: suppose we are using
the ext3 filesystem. Then we need to select the ext3 filesystem support
while configuring the kernel. Typically we have to run a

make menuconfig

This will bring up the ncurses interface for configuring the kernel.
There are other options such as 'make xconfig' and 'make config'.
The former will bring up the configuration menu in graphical mode and
the latter in text mode.

Once we select the different components we want for our kernel, we
can exit the configuration interface. We should select the option
to save the configuration from the configuration menu, before exiting.

After we have configured the kernel as mentioned above, we can find
a file named '.config' in the top level directory of the source.
This file is the configuration file. It contains various options and
their states (whether they are selected or not). For example, if we choose
to have the PCI support in our kernel we can find an entry of the form:

CONFIG_PCI=y

in the .config file. Similarly, options which are selected as not
required will appear as not set. Suppose we have not selected
the XFS filesystem support in our kernel we will find the following
in the .config

# CONFIG_XFS_FS is not set

A great feature of 2.6 kernels is that if we are running
make menuconfig (or
xconfig or config) for the first time, then the configuration menu we are
presented with is based on our current kernel configuration. In my case,
I have a Fedora Core 1 system. The kernel which I run is '2.4.22-1.2115.nptl'.
Hence when I run a 'make menuconfig' for the first time on the source then the
configuration menu presented will contain the options as given in
'/boot/config-2.4.22-1.2115.nptl'.

3. Building Dependencies

This step is required in kernels prior to 2.6 series (here I am only
referring to the stable series kernels). For example if we are using a
2.4 kernel then we have to build the dependencies explicitly. We have
to run the following:

make dep

This will build the dependencies. But for a 2.6 kernel we can skip
this step. The dependencies are automatically created when making the
final image with a 2.6 kernel.

4. Creating the final image

We can build various types of kernel binary images.
We can build a plain kernel image, or a compressed version of it; the usual
choice is compressed, or the 'bzImage'. We can create the bzImage by running

make bzImage

In 2.6 kernels this step will also resolve the dependencies and proceed
to create a bzImage image.

After the compilation is over we can find the kernel image at the path
arch/i386/boot/bzImage in case of an image for a 386 based processor
(Pentium, AMD etc.).

5. Compiling and Installing the modules

In the configuring section if we have selected some components to be
built as kernel modules then we need to compile those modules.
To compile the modules we should run the command:

make modules

This command will compile the components (which are selected
for module compilation) to modules. In a 2.4 kernel the result
will be .o files of the corresponding components. But in a
2.6 kernel the output file will be a .ko module. For example
if we have given the option for the Network driver of Realtek
cards to be built as modules then after giving a 'make modules'
we can find in 'driver/net/' a file named 8139too.o
in the case of a 2.4 kernel and 8139too.ko in the case of a
2.6 kernel.

After we have compiled the modules, it's time now to install the modules.
To install the modules run:

make modules_install

as root. This will install the modules and other necessary files into the
/lib/modules/2.6.9 directory.

6. Booting from the new kernel

Once we are done with the installation of modules, we
can go for an automatic installation procedure for the
kernel binary. We just have to run

make install

This will update the kernel image on to the /boot area, update
the configuration file of the bootloader (lilo.conf or
grub.conf) and then do the necessary actions to make the new
kernel bootable.

After this we need to reboot the machine. When the machine boots
next time the boot menu will present us with the option to boot
from the new kernel we built. We choose that option and voila!!
boot into a kernel we built all by ourselves!

7. Manual installation of the kernel

In case 'make install' does not work, or if we cannot perform an
automatic installation due to some other reason, we can go for a manual
installation of the kernel. For example, if we are using the grub boot
loader then we have to copy the bzImage into the boot partition and then
change the '/etc/grub.conf' to reflect the presence of the new
image. If we are having lilo boot loader then we have to copy the bzImage
to the boot location and then modify the lilo.conf and then run
the 'lilo' command to make sure that next time we boot we will
have our new image as a choice to boot from. The following are the steps we
should perform as root user if we are using lilo boot loader:

cp -a arch/i386/boot/bzImage /boot/bzImage-2.6.9

After this we add the following entry to /etc/lilo.conf

image=/boot/bzImage-2.6.9
label=2.6.9-kernel
root=your_root_disk

We should run lilo after this

lilo -v

We will reboot the machine after this. When we are prompted at
the lilo prompt enter '2.6.9-kernel' as the boot option and we
will be booting to the new custom built kernel.

8. Verbose compilation

We find that the compilation of the kernel is very quiet. Much less
information on what is getting compiled is shown on the screen while the
compilation proceeds.

9. Cleaning the kernel source

After we have initiated compilation once on the source if we want
to clean the object files and other temporary files then
we have to run the following:

make clean

This will remove most generated files but will keep the configuration
file.

If we need an absolute cleaning, i.e. if we want to return the source to
the state in which it was before we started the compilation, then do a

make mrproper

This command will delete all generated files, the configuration file as
well as various backup files. This will in effect unwind all the changes
we made to the source. The source after this step will be as good as it
was just after the download and untar.

10. Conclusion

We have seen how to obtain the linux kernel source, how to configure it,
how to build the kernel image and modules, how to boot from the newly compiled
kernel and how to do a verbose compilation. Also we have seen how to clean up
the temporary files and configuration files which were created during the
compilation. The next step for a budding kernel hacker would be to modify the
kernel source and try experimenting with it.

Krishnakumar loves to hack the Linux kernel. He works
for Hewlett-Packard and is a BTech from Govt. Engg. College
Thrissur.